At midnight on May 1, Fran and Anna Simon became the first same-sex couple to be legally unionized under Colorado's civil union law, which the Governor signed into law March 21. Denver Mayor Michael Hancock presided over the couple's ceremony, as they were surrounded by friends, family, and reporters eager to document the historic moment.

More than 100 LGBT couples waited in a line that stretched around the block from the entrance to downtown Denver's Wellington Webb Municipal Building, to be among the first to take advantage of the new law, according to statewide advocacy group One Colorado, which released the video below capturing the moment civil unions took effect.

The Simons, who live in Denver and have a six-year-old son together, wore the same wedding gowns they wore when they held a religious ceremony before family and friends eight years earlier. Still, the midnight ceremony was meaningful to the couple.

"We have been waiting 10 years to have access to critical legal protections that will help protect our family," Fran told The Advocate. "Many other couples have waited much longer. We are so glad to finally have these protections and to have our family recognized under Colorado law. We wore our wedding gowns 8 years ago for our religious ceremony and we wore them again [that] night. We look forward to the day we can wear them a third time when we, and all loving, committed couples, have the freedom to marry. Hopefully, the gowns will still fit!"